Asheville police chief sheds light on why he's leaving

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — Chief Chris Bailey is stepping down as the leader of the Asheville Police Department after relocating from Indianapolis just weeks ago.

“I had to make a decision, and the decision was to take care of my family,” Bailey said.

He said the move was difficult for him and his family, who planned to join him in Asheville next year.

“I didn’t anticipate the toll this move would take on them, and so I need to do the right thing and be back there with them,” Bailey said.

“I think that we can appreciate that, certainly, individual circumstances can change,” Carol Rogoff Hallstrom said. “I think the difficulty here is there has been a pattern.”

For seven years, Rogoff Hallstrom served on the Police Advisory Committee, working as a liaison between the police department and the community.

“I started when Bill Hogan was chief then there was William Anderson then there was Tammy Hooper now, Chris Bailey,” Rogoff Hallstrom said.

Bailey is the fourth chief hired in an eight-year period.

"That to me is striking. That's what requires a pause,” Rogoff Hallstrom said. “That's what requires a not just an internal city review, but a community review of processes.”

In January, the city signed a $35,000 contract with the Police Executive Research Forum to find a qualified chief. Six months and 89 applicants later, Bailey was on his way to Asheville.

Since his resignation, that same research group will conduct a search for his replacement.

In the meantime, Robert White, who was part of the selection team for Bailey, will become interim chief.

"Having a single organization ... a single set of outside consultants play these multiple roles is the cause for some concern,” Rogoff Hallstrom said. “The turmoil that is created by the ever-changing leadership is, inevitably, going to result in increased tensions between the department and the community and perhaps within the department itself.”

Bailey said he will be returning to the Indianapolis police department as a captain.

“Everyone is disappointed, and I can’t imagine that there would be anyone who isn’t disappointed about having to wait for somebody and then having it change so quickly. But, drawing it out -- I didn’t think was going to be fair either,” Bailey said.